Drinking with Friends Beneficial

Research has found that drinking with friends (rather than strangers
or acquaintances) in settings where food is available greatly reduces
the likelihood of heavy drinking and alcohol-related problems among
college students.

The protective factors affected man and women differently. For
men, the availability of food reduced the likelihood of alcohol-related
problems by 90%. For women, it was having friends or roommates present
that reduced the likelihood of alcohol related problems by the same
amount.